Reggie Miller implores old timers to 'embrace Steph'

Reggie Miller is rushing to the defense of Stephen Curry in the face of an onslaught of snide from stars of the past.

"As old time guys and former players, we have to embrace change," Miller told Charles Curtis of For The Win. "It's hard for old players to embrace change because whether you played in the '70s, '80s, '90s, (we all had) different rules. Basketball has evolved and it has changed. Change is good and we've got to embrace Steph and what he's doing."

Over the past month, old heads like Charles Barkley, Oscar Robertson, Phil Jackson, and others have downplayed Curry's game. Whether it's making unflattering comparisons, griping about defense ("coaches don't know anything about defenses!"), or complaining that Curry wouldn't thrive in the hand-checking era, former notables are tripping over themselves to attach caveats to the reigning MVP.

The pushback against Curry stems from the comparisons he's drawing to Michael Jordan - the timeless, undisputed icon of greatness. With Curry leading the league in scoring while leading a team threatening for 73 wins, Jordan is being dragged into conversations with Curry, which has the AARP crowd upset.

"You've got a team that shoots a lot of threes that's almost as brash as those Bulls teams and we don't want to accept that. We've got to let that go," Miller said. "We don't want to let go of Michael Jordan. It's okay! He will still be great. We will still view him and that team as the greatest ever. It's just that there's a new kid on the block."

Fellow shooter Dennis Scott, who once set the NBA record for most threes in a season with 267 (Curry has since surpassed 300), has a more pointed explanation as to why there's been so much pushback from former stars.

"They couldn’t do it," Scott told Monte Poole of CSN Bay Area. "It’s just that simple. That’s why we shooters are not mad at him."

Miller's choice to take the progressive route by accepting Curry is a breath of fresh air, but it's hard to discount his background. Curry is a prodigally gifted shooter, much like Miller, and his free-firing ways are stylistically similar to how Miller played.

But regardless of his personal stake in the matter, Miller makes an excellent point: stop hating and start accepting Curry.